Saturday, December 29, 2012

Pete for Brad

I had purchased some fabric from Girl Charlee Fabrics a couple of weeks ago and I had chosen two striped fabrics so I could make shirts for my husband or my sons. I had chosen a 'Green tonal stripe cotton jersey knit' and a 'Cloudy blue charcoal stripe cotton jersey knit' and as I suspected my husband's first choice was the green.
 
 
So, I pulled out my Pete pattern from Burdastyle and thought that I could finish a shirt in an evening.
Nope. It took much longer than anticipated.
 
 
The pattern is quite simple and I've made it before (the solid green shirt (fabric from our local Marshalls Fabrics)). But, the thin jersey fabric kept catching on my sand-paper hands and, my machine was not co-operating this time. I think because it was such a thin fabric.
 
 
So, after giving up my attempts at twin needling--especially after I had figured out how and then to my dismay when the fabric was stretched, it for some reason was not secured at the ends and came completely loose even though I had done the whole backstitch or knot stitch. (If you have any advice as to how to secure the beginning and ending of a seam, let me know!)
 
 
I do enjoy adding the finishing touches like a little love note on the tags. Don't mind the messy seam on the newest shirt--like I said, my machine and I were not getting along during the making of this shirt.

 
So, now my husband has two shirts made by his wifey and he actually likes them too. He has worn the dark green one many times and the striped one he wore for a while last night, letting me know that it is very comfy.
YES! All my mutterings to myself and my machine was not for nothing.

Monday, December 24, 2012

A Blessed Christmas!

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. (Luke 2:1-7)
 
Who is this Child that was born in a manger? For whom there was no room in the Inn?
 
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over hte house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." And Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I am a virgin?" And the angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God." (Luke 1:26-35)
 
The Son of God? The Son of the Most High? Holy? Who is Holy but God of whom it is said, "holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.'?
And, why should the Son of God--God Himself, the Creator of all things, humble Himself and be born of a woman? Why should He humble Himself and become a man?
 
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." (John 3:16-18)
 
Eternal life? Condemnation? What are these? Well, eternal life is pretty self-explanatory--a life in eternity with Christ, in heaven. Condemnation is eternal punishment in the flames of hell where those who continue in rebellion to God will face the punishment we all deserve.
So, Christ came into this world, died on the cross and rose again so that those who believe in Him shall have eternal life instead of the punishment we all deserve!
But is there no other way of salvation? No other way to escape eternal punishment?
 
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)
 
So, no, there is only one way of Salvation--one way to eternal life and that is through Christ.
How do we go through Christ? How can we get this Salvation?
 
But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ... ...For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romand 10:8-9, 13)

Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself." (Acts 2:37-39)

Repent of your sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ! This is the way to Salvation! You do not have to be a 'good' person--none of us are. We are all sinners. And, Christ died for us 'while we were yet sinners.' The 'healthy do not need a doctor but the sick.'
What a blessed gift that God has given--His only begotten Son, to die for us so that we may live!

'Glory to God in the Highest!'

Have a blessed Christmas as you remember what a precious gift Christ's birth is to mankind!
 
 

Friday, December 21, 2012

Super Simple Snowmen

Yesterday, my kids were very bored. I mean jumping and running and yelling bored.
So, I had to get them to sit down quietly, and what better way than to do a craft.
I came up with this:
 
 
Paper snowmen attached to clothes pins to decorate the tree with.
(sorry about the bad lighting in these pictures--our house is rather dark with not much natural light and I am no expert with my camera.)
So, I thought it'd be fun to share this with you if your kids are getting the 'is-Christmas-here-yet itch.'
Presenting the:
 
 SUPER SIMPLE SNOWMEN
 
Things you'll need:
  •  white cardstock
  • pencil
  • glue sticks
  • glue gun
  • scrap paper
  • clothes pins
  • ribbon
 
I folded the white cardstock to make three snowmen. Then, I drew a snowman on the top one.
 

And, cut them out in one shot. 

 
I cut out three top hats from black scraps and as the kids were gluing those, I cut six brown 'twig' arms out of brown scraps. Also, three orange scrap carrot noses were required.

That giraffe there, 'Tip Top' is almost a constant companion of my daughter.
 
They drew the eyes on with pencil and one of them drew buttons as well.

Love how my daughter glued on her nose!
 
I took the ribbon and tied it loosely around the neck and fastened it with a dot or two of hot glue. Then, I also hot glued the clothes pin to the back so the opening is facing up towards the hat.

I got this fake tree for free the other day!
Much less mess than a real one and I can't dry it out!
 
And, here they are finished on the tree.
Very quick and simple--perfect for a last-minute craft to keep the kids quiet!
 
I also have an adult or older child version that I made around 6 years ago:
 
 
Cute, eh?
 


Tuesday, December 18, 2012

All Stre-e-t-t--c-c-h-h-e-e-d-d-d-d-d Out

Sometimes a project just doesn't work out the way you want.
This shirt is one of those.
 
 
It is another Jalie 2805 and the problem was NOT the pattern.
It was the second-hand store fabric. And, my children. And, my laziness.

 
The fabric stretched out as I hemmed the bottom.

 
The fabric stretched out as I hemmed the sleeves.

 
 
The neckline was stretched out by my children. I had the neckband cut and sewn in a circle, waiting on my desk to be sewn into the shirt. But, I had to do some work and left it there. A little later I heard my oldest telling two of his younger siblings, "Don't!!! That's for Mommy's shirt!" I turned to look and sure enough, they were each pulling on one end of the neckband. It was completely stretched out. Like completely.  

 
But, in my laziness, instead of cutting another one, I thought with some major heat from my iron after sewing it would shrink back a little. It did--a wee little. Nothing like it needed to be shrunk back to a good neckband.
 
So, I have this shirt that is rather stretched out. It's still wearable at home--that's about it. And, because the hem and sleeves are all stretched out as well, I can't muster up the courage to start unpicking that neckband--that cover stitch I use on my machine is a PAIN to unpick.
 
Have you ever made something that is a bit of a flop?

Friday, December 7, 2012

A Winner!

First of all, 'Hello' to all my new followers! I hope you'll enjoy my posts in the future--I am rather sporadic with posting but I have fun posting when I do.
 
Second, I apologize to those I did not reply to their comments. I tried, but sending off 179 emails takes A LOT of time! Instead, I'll thank you here for commenting and entering my giveaway--I had a lot of fun reading all your comments with so many great ideas!
 
Last but certainly not least, the winner of the Sew Mama Sew giveaway is # 80: Wobbly Bobbin who said:
'I love the bright colors! I think I a doll blanket would be perfect!'
 
Congratulations!!! I will email you shortly to get your mailing address!
If you do not reply within 48 hours, I will have to pick a new winner.
 
 

Monday, December 3, 2012

A Fabric Giveaway!!! *Closed*

I'm quite excited--my first fabric giveaway!!!

Giveaway Day
 
Sew Mama Sew is hosting the Giveaway Day again and this'll be my second time joining in--last May I had a vintage pattern to giveaway but now, I have fabric!
 

I love entering giveaways, especially if it is a fabric giveaway.
Who doesn't 'need' more fabric? And, what better way to get it than free?
So, I thought it'd be fun to host my own fabric giveaway--Sunny Daze by Timeless Treasures.
It's a scrap bundle but they are still quite large pieces.
I think the smallest is approximately 12" x 20" so there's a lot of fabric to still play with!
 

 
So, the small print: This is for US and Canada readers only, I'm sorry!
Leave one comment letting me know what you would do with this scrap bundle!
I'd love if you would follow my blog, but it is not mandatory.
I will close this giveaway on the 7th of December, around 5PM MST.
Have fun!!!
*Update: Please make sure you are not a no-reply commenter and if you are, please include an email address. (Unless I know you personally :) ) Thanks! *
 
If you want to enter more giveaways, click on the image below to go back to the Sew Mama Sew blog:
 
Giveaway Day
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Up-cycled T-Shirt Skirt Tutorial

I had recently gone through my closet and found a stack of tanks and t-shirts that were immodest. So, they were thrown out of my closet onto a pile in the hopes I could salvage the material at least.
 
 
Here are the three I chopped up the other day:
 
 
Notice the grey one has an elastic in there. And, it fits around my waist perfectly. Yes! One less step.
(If yours does not have an elastic in there, you can make a casing by folding it over by a 1/4", press, fold again by 1 1/4" and sew on the edge, leaving a hole to thread the elastic through. Stitch the hole shut  after the elastic has been threaded through, and the ends sewn together using a zig zag stitch.)

 
So, first of all, I cut the two colored tanks so that I had four 8.5" wide pieces.

 
And, I seam-ripped and cut the top off the grey shirt. It ended up being a 15" long 'skirt' on its own--not quite modest enough for me and pretty boring--just grey. I did leave the hem on since I didn't feel like seam ripping that.

 
I cut the four colored pieces open on one seam so I could sew the pieces together into one continuous piece in each color.

 
Now, with right sides together, I sewed the purple onto the grey, using a 1/4" seam allowance.

 
So, I had this:

 
*Skip this step, but this was part of my (ahem) learning process*
Next, I played around and was going to make a layer above the purple so that it would be a sort of layered ruffle skirt. It didn't sit right, so I seam ripped the whole green/blue piece off again.


*Continue here*
And, instead, sewed it to the purple, right sides together, lining up seams and again using a 1/4" seam allowance. Much better. 

 
But, in my seam ripping process, I got a bit of a hole in the grey fabric. That needs to be covered up.
 
 
I had cut the hems off the bottom of the colored shirts just above the stitching. I now cut just below the stitching and stitched a gathering stitch in the fold. This piece was approximately 36" x 1".
And, I gathered it.
 

And, sewed them together to make these ruffled flowers. To do so, you just roll the gathered fabric up into a circle, hand stitching them together.
I now have 1 large green/blue flower and 2 small purple flowers that are actually stuck together. I just rolled them up from opposite ends. 

 
After placing them where I wanted, and cutting all threads off, I hand-stitched them to the skirt, covering the hole.
I had some company while doing so:

 
Voila:

 
A skirt made out of upcycled t-shirts.
I did not hem the bottom or finish it in anyway--the knit fabric will not fray and I *think* I like the unfinished look. If I get annoyed with it later, I can always hem it another day.

 
I really like wearing knit skirts--they're so comfy! And, what better way than to upcycle unused shirts!
 
Whew! I hope that makes sense--this is my first tutorial type post. If you have any questions, just comment and I will try to answer them!


Friday, November 23, 2012

Our Righteous Advocate

The other day, I came across this poem in the magazine, 'Current.' It's from the mid 1800's so it is in the public domain and I could not resist sharing. Wow!

Our Righteous Advocate

Father, I bring this worthless child to Thee,
To claim Thy pardon, once, yet once again.
Receive him at my hand, for he is mine.
He is a worthless child; he owns his fault;
Look not on him, he will not bear the glance;
Look but on me, I'll hide his filthy garments.
He pleads not for himself--he dares not plead:
His cause is mine--I am his Intercessor.
By that unchanged, unchanging love of Thine,
By each pure drop of blood I shed for him,
By all the sorrows graven on my soul.
By every wound I bear, I claim it true.
Father Divine! I would not have him lost;
He is a worthless child, but he is mine!
Sin hath destroyed him--sin hath died in me;
Satan hath bound him--Satan is my slave;
Death hath desired him--I have conquered death.
My Father, hear him now--not him, but me;
I would not have him lost for all the worlds
Which Thou hast long created for my glory,
Because he is a poor, a worthless child,
And all--his every hope--on me it lies.
I know my children, and I know him mine.
By all his tears he weeps upon my bosom,
By his full heart that beateth against mine,
I know him by the sign my children bear,
That trusting love by which he cleaves to me.
I could not bear to see him cast away,
Vile as he is! the weakest of my flock,
The one that grieves me most and loves me least.
Yes! tho' his sins dim every spark of love,

I measure not my love by his returns,
And though the stripes I send to bring him home
Should seem to drive him further from my arms,
Still he is mine! I lured him from the world.
He has no right, no home, but in my love.
Tho' earth and hell combined against him rise,
I'm bound to rescue him, for we are one.

Oh, sinner! What an Advocate is thine;
Methinks I see Him lead the captive in,
Poor, sorrowful, ashamed, trembling with fear,
Shrinking behind his Lord, accused, condemned,
Well pleased to hide the form himself abhors
With that all-spotless garment of his Friend.
But look! some secret impulse lifts his eye,
To see if love be mingled now with wrath,
If mercy beams upon the Father's face.
Poor sinner! read thy welcome in that smile,
And hear the Father's word to Him for thee:
"Take Thy poor, worthless child! I have forgiven."

-E. Berrill

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Cuba

 We went to Cuba for our 4th time and I thought I'd share some of the beauty of that country with you:

 
During our trip, we biked down to the beach with a friend and brother of Christ. 
The waves rolling in was just awesome and we spent a little bit of time, just drinking in that ocean air.

 
 
One of the many types of trees in Cuba. I'm not sure what the fruit on this tree is, but if I'm not mistaken, and remember correctly, it was some sort of nut.
 
 
We parked our bikes here--a 'tourist' spot for the locals.

 
On the way back, the landscape was breath-taking. The Sierra Maestra mountain range in the background with rolling fields and scattered palm trees and forests.

 
Flamingoes. We could not get any closer and neither could my camera but that is the first time I've ever seen flamingoes in the wild. Pretty cool!

 
This sweet little boy sitting on top of a bunch of bananas was his dad's idea. I was amazed the banana bunches were that strong!
 
 
And, a present for us from one of the families we stayed with. We had a good laugh, took some pictures without getting our toes snapped, and then released the fellow.
 
And, those are just a glimpse into the beautiful country of Cuba.
 
We could not post all our pictures for privacy reasons, but if you are interested, and you are in the local area, we'd love to share our pictures and how the Lord directs our path while there!

Back At It

Well, I'm back from another Cuba trip.
I'm considering posting at least some pictures of that beautiful country, but that'll have to be another post on its own.
For now, I'll just post the sewing I've been up to since I got back home:
 
 
Before we left, I had an order of washcloths to fill after I got home.

 
I love packaging them up all pretty. Don't worry--it's not only a stack of boy washcloths--there's plenty of girl ones in there as well so I felt it'd be alright to use a bright pink ribbon. (Can you tell I really like pink?)

 
I left my PJs in Cuba. If you recall hurricane Sandy, before it ever reached the US, it had left a huge path of destruction in the Carribean? Well, we were able to help in a tiny way by leaving most of our clothes (other than what we were wearing and a pair of clothes to travel back home to the rather cold Albertan climate) with a Baptist Church in Cuba to bring to Santiago de Cuba.
So, I needed new PJs.

 
I found a Simplicity pattern online for free: #0501.
It's pretty simple. And, I didn't feel like making anything to complicated for a pair of PJs.
In fact, I deviated from the patterns instructions a bit. Instead of measuring myself before making it and shortening it with the line, I just made it and whacked 4.5 inches off the bottom later plus folded the hem up 2 inches to make it short enough. Also, the instructions said to turn the drawstring right side out after sewing it. I did not feel like turning over a metre of super skinny tubing right side out, so I just trimmed the fabric almost up to the seam and threaded it into the pants. I know, not super professional, but they're PJs.

 
The fabric is some Hello Kitty flannel that I bought for $3 a metre. That and some pink heart fabric is the only flannel I had enough of to make these and I didn't really feel like wearing all hearts to bed.
I think I need to go fabric shopping for some grown-up fabric.
The t-shirt is an old t-shirt of mine that was actually in my 'weeded-out-of-my-closet' pile. It'll do for PJs.
So, that is what I've been up to since our return last week.
What have you been sewing in the last week?